Introduction to Representation

This is in MM51 on page 6 - go to our Media Magazine archive to find the article. Complete the following tasks:

 1) Why is representation an important concept in Media Studies?

   It is an important concept in the media as how you present a person or group of persons creates a subconscious image of them that people tend to perpetuate in the outside world. 

2) How does the example of Kate Middleton show the way different meanings can be created in the media? 

 

   Hendry gives the example of how she is presented in print media, where her and the royal team comb out every little detail to present her in an acceptable way. Her team would put considerable thought into the outfit that she's wearing, the location of the image, her pose, facial expressions etc. This ensures they have the most control over how she is presented in the media. However in unoffical photos like in the paparazzi, she nor her team can control how she's presented. So she herself needs to keep alert on how she presents herself in public. By ensuring her outfits are always sophisticated and facial expressions correlate with her environment. 

3) Summarise the section 'The how, who and why of media representation' in 50 words.

  To question representation we must consider how the producer is representing, who they're representing and why they're representing a certain group they way they are. The producer considers the expectations and needs of the target audience, the limitations provided by the genre codes, the type of narrative they wish to create and their institutional merit. The representation then is a culmination of rejections and selections, the elements that are rejected don't carry the meaning of what the producer wants to communicate  For example even a simple element such as the choice of wallpaper in the home of a family in a sitcom can communicate so much towards the audience. It could communicate that they're a stoic and uneventful family or a chic and fashionable one. Although the wallpaper in this scenario is not ideological in of itself, this combined with other representational choices can help create ideological meaning. If these ideologies are repeated critical philosophers such as Roland Barthes would say that these meanings become "naturalised". Suggesting that these meanings go unquestioned which can lead to the "silencing of difference",- in the words of Barthes, as people now believe that there's no need in questioning something if they perceive it to be the "norm".

4) How does Stuart Hall's theory of preferred and oppositional readings fit with representation?

Hall suggested that there are preferred and oppositional readings for how people perceive a product. A fitting theory in relation to representation, where the way people are represented and how the audience perceives that could result in either reading. 

5) How has new technology changed the way representations are created in the media?

 Now that UGC is a bigger thing on the internet people are able to make their own assumptions about a group of people and even perpetuate how they perceive them to be. Resulting in new "naturalised" meanings that make their way into our society. 

6) What example is provided of how national identity is represented in Britain - and how some audiences use social media to challenge this?

 National identity is invariably raised during national sports competitions. During the 2014 World Cup, The Sun sent a free newspaper to 22 million households in England which represented its own concepts of ‘Englishness’ by symbolic references – queuing, the Sunday roast, Churchill and The Queen – to heroes, values and behaviours that the paper (and its

owners, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corps) defined as appropriate expressions of ‘English identity’. However, social media forums and comment pages allowed many people

to voice their rejection of the messages. Through self representation, they were able to show that they distanced themselves from the values in the tabloid newspaper. 

Watch the clip from Luther that we studied in class (Season 1, Episode 1 - minute 7.40-10.00 - you'll need your Greenford Google login to access the clip). Now answer these final two questions:

7) Write a paragraph analysing the dominant and alternative representations you can find in the clip from Luther.

A dominant representation for the main character is that he seems to be an anti-hero. Although he's in the police force he doesn't seem to follow the rules and procedures that are required of him to do his job. He is liked by his boss and partner, even though they seem to know about his unethical methods. His subordinates look up to him and see him as the pinnacle of what they want to be in the force. So a dominant reading of this character could be that he's an anti-hero, a troupe which is on the rise with the younger generation. The audience may see him do things that they believe is necessary for the greater good. However, an alternative reading could be that Luther is a nuisance who makes everyones jobs harder; especially the higher-ups. Therefore an oppositional reading for his character would be that he is disliked amongst the  audience and causes annoyances. 

 

8) Write a paragraph applying a selection of our representation theories to the clip from Luther. Our summary of each theory may help you here:

 Dyer suggests that the complexities and variety of a group is reduced to a few key characteristics, in the case of Luther, the characteristics of the anti-hero is prevalent and amplified. It is amplified so the audience is able to recognise what type of character he is and therefore will be able to predict his forthcoming actions. Helping the audience to not be surprised by his actions but wonder how far he's willing to go, culminating a feeling of curiosity in the audience as well as active engagement. The combined stereotype of the anti-hero and the good cop, is not a very common subject. However it is done quite well and those two roles are played consistently through Idris. Now the stereotype of the anti-hero is that they play more a vigilante role which is true in luthers case. Perkins suggests that some stereotypes can be true and even positive. Although the stereotypical vigilante is neither a positive nor negative one, the way it is portrayed is profoundly true. 

Levi-Strauss: representation and ideology

Mulvey: the male gaze

Dyer: stereotyping and power
Medhurst: value judgements
Perkins: some stereotypes can be positive or true